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The Brown Bulletin

July 2012

Michael A. Brown
Councilmember At-Large Chair Pro Tempore
Council of the District of Columbia 1350 Pennsylvania Ave., NW Suite 406 Washington, DC 20004 202-724-8105 202-724-8071 fax mbrown@dccouncil.us www.michaelbrownatlarge.com Chairperson Economic Development and Housing Statehood and Self Determination Co-chair Subcommittee on Redistricting Committees Finance and Revenue Human Services Government Operations Small and Local Business Development Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments Member

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COUNCIL IN RECESS, OFFICE FULLY OPEN

On Monday, July 16, 2012, the Council of the District of Columbia officially adjourned for recess until mid- September 2012. However, the office of Councilmember Michael A. Brown and the Committee on Economic Development and housing will remain fully open daily, Monday thru Friday from the hours of 9:00 AM until 5:00 PM. If you have an issue or concern, please feel free to stop by Suite 406, send an email to Kevin Smith, Administrative Assistant at ksmith@dccouncil.us, or call the office at 202-724-8105.

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COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND HOUSING MICHAEL A. BROWN, CHAIRPERSON Summary of Councilmember Browns Legislation at the July 10, 2012 Council Session
1. Introduced the Protecting Injured Government Workers Reform Act of 2012
Each year over 2,000 injured D.C. government employees go through the Public Sector Workers Compensation Program. These are our government workers who have been injured on the job while providing a service to our residents and as such they deserve our gratitude and support. This bill addresses concerns associated with the claims process to ensure that a fair and informed determination is made. Specifically the bill: Establishes a more informed and impartial medically-based determination process by providing the approved treating physician great weight during the eligibility determination process; Allows an inclusive claims process that doesnt discriminate against mental or emotional conditions; Provides additional flexibility for Administrative Law Judges to extend benefits beyond the arbitrary cap if they determine that the injury continues to prohibit the claimant from working; and Allows the claimant to continue to receive benefits through their first round of appeals, which the Director of the Office of Risk Management has acknowledged is actually the first stage in which claims receive any meaningful legal review.

2. Amended and passed the Fiscal Year 2012 Second Revised Budget Request Congressional
Review Emergency Adjustment Act of 2012
The amendment will alter the eligibility language of the furlough rebate to ensure that all teachers who are separated from DC Public Schools this summer (or ANY DC Govt employee either voluntarily or involuntarily separated after July 10, 2012) will still be eligible to receive a full rebate of the furloughs that were taken in Fiscal Year 2011. Without this amendment all those who were scheduled to be separated from DCPS on July 14, 2012 would have been ineligible because they would have missed the original eligibility date by 7 days.

The Furlough rebate is expected to be received by the start of the school year. 3. Introduced and passed the Career and Technical Education Plan Establishment Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2012; and the Career and Technical Education Plan Establishment Emergency and Temporary Acts of 2012
Career and Technical Education (or CTE) is one of the areas that has incredible potential but not nearly enough attention, support, and resources. Many of the Districts current CTE programs are not as robust or effective as they could be and they have failed to engage many students who would otherwise excel in such learning environments. This reality may have contributed to the citys dropout rates as well as the skills deficit in certain segments of our citys labor force. This bill addresses these issues by empowering a CTE task force that will be charged with conducting an in-depth review and analysis of our current CTE offerings and developing a detailed strategic plan for our citys CTE programs that will include specific standards for all District funded CTE programs. 4. Passed the Walter Reed Army Medical Center Base Realignment and Closure Homeless

Assistance Submission Emergency Approval Act of 2012

This bill approves the Homeless Assistance Submission, including the Walter Reed Reuse Plan, the Walter Reed Local Redevelopment Authority (LRA) Committee recommendations, and the Legally Binding Agreements. The District, as the Walter Reed LRA, cannot begin negotiations with the Department of the Army for transfer of the site unless and until this bill has been submitted to and approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. It is important to take this emergency action, so the process for the redevelopment of the Walter Reed campus can truly begin. This parcel represents a tremendous economic development opportunity to the District and to Ward 4 in particular.

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Councilmember Michael A. Brown urging Mayor Gray to include Free DC message into VeriFone taxi meter contract
At-large Councilmember Michael A. Brown, Chair of the Subcommittee on Statehood and Self-Determination, is working with Mayor Gray to include in the pending contract with VeriPhone language requiring the company to run fifteen (15) second public service announcements touting the District of Columbias lack of budget autonomy, congressional voting rights and quest for statehood. Recently, the city reached a $35 million dollar deal with VeriFone to install smart meters, which enable credit card payments, panic buttons and TV monitors in each of the roughly 6500 taxi cabs in the District. The full Council of the District th of Columbia voted on legislation permitting the use of smart meters in cabs on Tuesday, July 10 . Following approval by the Council, the Mayor will officially enter into a contractual agreement with VeriPhone. Similar to their meters in New York City, which has celebrities such as Joan Rivers and Alec Baldwin welcoming visitors with the I Love New York tagline, the TVs could display a short introduction to the Nations Capital highlighting the Districts unique status as the only jurisdiction whose laws and budgets must be approved by Congress and whose 620,000 residents have a non-voting Delegate to Congress. Cleary, the Mayor and I are strong supporters of breaking away from the chains of Congressional rule and anyway we can continue to raise public awareness and garner support for DC budget autonomy, voting rights and eventually statehood is well worth the effort, stated Councilmember Michael A. Brown before the Councils vote on the legislation.

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Left Picture- Thelma Jones, Ward 7 Activist and Fairlawn Neighborhood Civic Association leader, was feted at the June 15, 2012 street renaming ceremony in her honor. Thelma is one of a few rare individuals who have received the honor while still living. Right Picture- Councilmember Brown attended the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony at Paul Lawrence Dunbar Senior Apartments, a renovated affordably priced, transit oriented senior facility, at 15th and U Streets NW in Ward 1.

COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE JULY 10, 2012 SESSION
On July 10th, the Council held its final session before the summer recess. Here are some of the important pieces of legislation acted upon and how Councilmember Michael A. Brown voted on them. SUPPORTED
(Bill 19-755) Social E-Commerce Job Creation Tax Incentive Act of 2012 (LivingSocial tax credit)
The Act provides a real property tax credit (Property Tax Credit), which is capped at $15 million in total between FY 2016 and FY 2025. In order to use the Property Tax Credit, LivingSocial must occupy at least 200,000 square feet of office space that will be constructed or rehabilitated after June 2012. The bill also provides for a corporate franchise tax credit (Income Tax Credit), which is capped at $17.5 million.

(Bill 19-630) Taxicab Service Improvement Amendment Act of 2012

The legislation amends the District of Columbia Taxicab Commission Establishment Act of 1985 to provide needed improvements to the taxicab industry through the implementation of technology upgrades in taxicabs; cleaner, morefuel efficient vehicles; accessibility for individuals with disabilities; increased driver training; and structural changes to the Taxicab Commission. *An Amendment to B19-630, introduced by Jack Evans, clarifies the legality of Uber car service until Dec. 31, 2012, at which time a more permanent legal designation can be made.

Taxicab Services Improvement Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2012 Taxicab Services Improvement Emergency Amendment Act of 2012
Approves a contract with VeriFone Systems, Inc., to develop, install and operate a Taxicab Smart Meter System (TSMS) that will include credit card readers, digital manifests, passenger and driver safety buttons, and other service improvements. This legislation also authorizes the Taxicab Commission to levy a surcharge, not to exceed 50 cents per taxicab ride. The funds raised from this surcharge will be used to pay the cost of the TSMS, and the cost of providing other service improvements, such as expanding the number of wheelchair accessible vehicles and the number of taxis serving underserved areas, as well as providing some funding to the operations of the Taxicab Commission.

(PR 19-777) Chief Financial Officer of the District of Columbia Natwar M. Gandhi Confirmation Resolution of 2012
Confirmed Dr. Gandhi to a new 5 year term.

Cogeneration Equipment Personal Property Tax Exemption Emergency Act of 2012

These measures would exempt equipment for large cogeneration facilities from the Districts personal property tax. Cogeneration is an efficient form of electricity generation, as well as a source of efficient heating and cooling. The environmental benefits of cogeneration are well documented.

Criminal Penalty for Unregistered Motorist Repeal Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2012
District law allowed police officers to make an arrest for a lapsed motor vehicle registration. These arrests garnered local and national press coverage, leading to widespread criticism of a law that some saw as draconian. This bill repeals that law.

District of Columbia Public Schools Partnership Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2012 Authorizes the District of Columbia Public Schools to enter into agreements with parent and community groups to assist individual schools in managing the use of their facilities by outside groups.

AGAINST
(Bill 19-833) Residential Permit Parking Zone Boundaries Emergency Amendment Act of 2012 Councilmember Brown believes that we should not change the zone parking permit program without greater public input from potentially affected residents.

COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

OFFICE OF COUNCILMEMBER MICHAEL A. BROWN Chairman, Committee on Economic Development and Housing Council Chair Pro Tempore MEDIA RELEASE July 17, 2012 For more information contact 202-724-8190

CM Michael A. Brown Hosts Successful Business Meeting with D.C. Certified Business Enterprises. Identifying and Eliminating Hurdles to Local Business Success
Today, At-large Councilmember Michael A. Brown, Chair of the Committee on Economic Development and Housing, hosted a listening roundtable meeting with local business owners on the pending and upcoming economic development projects available for Certified Business Enterprises (CBE). The meeting was held at the offices of the Washington DC Economic Partnership, where nearly 100 local businesses participated. The meeting titled, Navigating Economic Development and Business Opportunities in the District of Columbia: Identifying and Eliminating Hurdles to Local Business Success provided business owners and representatives an opportunity to engage in dialog and learn how best to navigate government programs and policies to successfully grow. It was also an opportunity to hear from business owners their opinion on needed regulatory reforms to reduce the Districts reputation as anti-business. Some discussed the need for greater outreach and information of upcoming projects and contracting opportunities, while others discussed the need for the city to assist with access to capital and to consider providing bonding for smaller companies. Some participants mentioned reforming the citys permitting process and suggested allowing third party entities to fill that role. Participants in todays meeting included representatives of large stakeholders such as Hensel Phelps and M & T Bank mixed with small minority business, including Capitol City Associates, Bell Architects and the Washington Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Todays meeting is the first in a series of meetings Councilmember Brown intends on hosting. Future meetings will pull together industry specific groups, continue to connect developers with smaller DC companies and expose local businesses to District contracting officers. Videos of the question and answer portion of the meeting are available herehttp://www.youtube.com/user/CMMichaelABrown

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Pictures of the D.C. Certified Business Enterprises Meeting

IN OBSERVANCE OF RAMADAN

Councilmember Michael A. Brown would like to acknowledge our friends and neighbors who observe the holy month of Ramadan. Ramadan is a time of spiritual reflection and worship and a time when purity of both thoughts and actions is important. Ramadan also teaches Muslims to practice self-discipline, self-control, sacrifice, and empathy for those who are less fortunate; thus encouraging actions of generosity and charity. We should all aspire to these qualities.

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